BUFFALO, N.Y. — Seth Jones roared into a swath of open ice Sunday night in overtime with a chance to send the Nationwide Arena crowd home happy.

With the game on his stick, the Blue Jackets defenseman attempted to thread a cross-ice pass to teammate Pierre-Luc Dubois on a 2-on-1 break.

Hockey is the world’s fastest team sport and nowhere can a player go from potential hero to goat quicker than in the wild joyride that is 3-on-3 overtime. So when Jones’ pass was broken up by Florida defenseman Keith Yandle, experience taught him to fight for the puck rather than swing back up the ice and hope to defend.

“You’ve got to kill plays quick because (the other team can) transition quick,” Jones said. “You lose that puck battle and it’s a dangerous chance (for the opposition).”

Because the Jackets triumphed 3-2 in a shootout, few fans probably recall Jones’ effort to win the puck from Yandle and Evgenii Dadonov in the corner. He sailed...

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